I am the fittest I've ever been but you will never get to see my midriff

Celebrities, ready! Gladiators, ready! Four brave stars will kick off 2025 by going head-to-head with the superhuman athletes in the first-ever celebrity version of the BBC reboot. Ahead of the show, TV Editor Nicola Methven and Kate Begley caught up with the intrepid celebs at the Gladiators arena in Sheffield...

- Louise Minchin

She may be the oldest contestant but Gladiators beware - Louise Minchin is in the best shape of her life. The former BBC Breakfast host, 56, rediscovered sport when she was 45 and has gone on to compete in a string of triathlons.

And she reckons her newfound fitness put her in a prime position to take on the Gladiators, both physically and mentally.

Louise says: "I'm probably fitter now than when I was 25. Being the fittest I have ever been has changed me in lots of different ways.